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4. Claims and Evidence / Reasoning and Organization. Why does Morris provide the 4
anecdote about stealing candy as a child? What does Morris mean when he says his father
“coached” him (par. 13), and how did that lesson impact the rest of his life?
5. Claims and Evidence / Reasoning and Organization. What is Morris’s purpose in chapter 4
discussing various cities in paragraph 21? How do his experiences in San Francisco, Boston,
Atlanta, and Houston affect his sense of identity?
6. Rhetorical Situation / Reasoning and Organization. Why does Morris structure the Other Voices / Wesley Morris
following sentence as a single paragraph: “I’ve tried to empathize with this thinking and
am always surprised that I can’t close the deal” (par. 26)? What is the effect of this
rhetorical choice?
Copyright (c) 2023 Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. Uncorrected proofs have been used for this sample chapter.
7. Rhetorical Situation. What is the effect of including a catalog of family members who kept
a mustache? How does the effect of this list differ from the lists of famous mustachioed men
Morris provides throughout the essay?
8. Reasoning and Organization / Style. How does the image of the “butterfly” introduced in
paragraph 35 align with both Martin Luther King Jr.’s mustache and Morris’s interpretation of
what King wanted for the country? TRM Rubric
A rubric for these pr
A rubric for these prompts can be found in
ompts can be found in
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the Teacher’s Resource Materials.
the T
eacher’
s Resour
ce Materials.
Topics for Composing

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1. AP FRQ Rhetorical Analysis. In Wesley Morris’s 2020 essay “My Mustache, Myself,” he
DIFFERENTIATION
explains how the simple act of growing a mustache during the COVID-19 pandemic led to DIFFERENTIA TION
realizations about race and identity. Read paragraphs 16–20 carefully. Write an essay that
Connections to World
analyzes the rhetorical choices Morris makes to convey his argument about how your Connections to W orld
circumstances shape or alter your identity. Composing Q2.
Composing Q2. High school can be a time
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2. AP FRQ Argument. Reflecting upon his years at Yale University, Wesley Morris asserts of shifting friend groups and associations,
of shifting friend gr
oups and associations,
that “acculturation can breed estrangement.” Write an essay that argues your position on and you might ask students to think about
and you might ask students to think about
whether the process of assimilation spurs a distancing from one group as you become closer
their own experiences of assimilation into
to another. their own experiences of assimilation into
one group that caused a distance from
3. Connections. In a 2021 article for Esquire Middle East entitled “So Why Do Men Have one gr oup that caused a distance fr om
another group they had been a part of.
Moustaches, Anyway,” a staff writer says, “whether to wear a moustache . . . is an upfront another group they had been a part of.
On a larger scale, you could ask them to
declaration to the set of society’s rules you choose to follow.” Describe what the clothes and On a larger scale, you could ask them to
explore the meanings of “acculturation,”
accessories you wear say about the society to which you belong. What does your style say explore the meanings of “acculturation,”
about you and the rules “you choose to follow”? including, perhaps, the forced acculturation
including, perhaps, the forced acculturation
of American Indians in the early twentieth
4. Speaking and Listening. Interview a friend, classmate, or family member who is of American Indians in the early twentieth
recognized for a particular stylish flair. This person, for instance, might be known for century.
century.
a particular hairstyle, love of tattoos, or passion for shoes. What does this style
represent? When did this interest begin and why? How do the thoughts and feelings
that Morris associates with his mustache compare with those that your interviewee
DIFFERENTIATION
discusses? DIFFERENTIA TION
Connections to Self
Connections to Self
Composing Q2. As an alternative slant on
Composing Q2.
this question, you could ask students if
this question, you could ask students if
they have ever tested out a new look—a
they have ever tested out a new look—a
fashion choice, a hairstyle, or a consciously
fashion choice, a hairstyle, or a consciously
new attitude—and then had to assess
new attitude—and then had to assess
whether to maintain it. Why did they
whether to maintain it. Why did they
choose to keep or abandon the choice?
253 choose to keep or abandon the choice?
How did it make them think about their
How did it make them think about their
identity?
identity?
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